A powerful winter storm churning across the Great Plains is expected to reach the Capital Region on Tuesday night or Wednesday morning, though its impact will be far less severe here, according to the National Weather Service.

The storm has pummelled portions of the Midwest with up to a foot of snow, but the Albany area should see around 1 to 2 inches of snowfall, said Ian Hill, a National Weather Service meteorologist.

The storm will stall over the Northeast on Wednesday as it moves off the Great Lakes, and precipitation should linger throughout the day and possibly into Thursday morning. Rain could switch back to snow Wednesday night into Thursday if temperatures dip back down around freezing, according to meteorologists. Accumulations will be highest in points north and east of Albany and in higher elevations to the south, such as the Catskills.

The meteorologist, however, cautioned that the precipitation projections could change, as the Capital Region is "right on the border" of the storm's track and an increase in just a few degrees could mean less snow.

Wednesday's open house at Saratoga Technology and Energy Park was postponed in anticipation of poor weather. The event will be re-scheduled, according to a press release.

Twice this month storms that were projected to sock the Capital Region had far less of an impact than first anticipated.

A storm system that moved into Albany on Saturday was first projected to drop up to 6 inches of snow, but barely dusted the city. A Feb. 8-9 storm that punished much of New England with record amounts of snow — more than 2 feet in many regions — hit the Albany area with around 6-8 inches, according to weather service records.

Those underwhelming storms have contributed to the second consecutive dry winter in Albany. For the season, Albany had just 27.1 inches of snowfall through Tuesday morning, nearly 20 inches below the 45.2-inch average for the date. At this point in the 2011-2012 season, just 14.2 inches of snow had fallen in Albany, according to weather service records.